Android 11 Go brings better usability, privacy to low-cost phones

Android 11 is already available for Pixel phones. It will be ready soon for some devices from Xiaomi, OPPO, Realme, and OnePlus. The OxygenOS 11 Open Beta 1 based on Android 11 for OnePlus 8 and OnePlus 8 Pro has also rolled out. Earlier this week, we listed the exclusive Android 11 features for Pixel phones. The mobile OS is ready with user-oriented features and we noted it brings some 117 new emojis and major design changes. It is now “stable” for the Pixel phones and we can expect more related announcements will be made.

The Android 11 reveal means the Go edition is around the corner. It is almost ready as the Android team has already shared the new features coming to more mobile devices. The special edition of Android 11 is made especially for those phones powered by less than 2GB of RAM.

The first time Android Go was mentioned here was in 2018. It has since expanded to more phones from different OEMs. For Android 11, the Go edition is ideal for most entry-level Android phones. It is a lighter version of Android 11 that can bring better speed, reliability, and security to millions of affordable smartphones sold around the world.

As with the regular Android 11, Android 11 (Go edition) offers improved communication, usability, and privacy. Expect 20% added speed compared to the Android 10 (Go edition). The new mobile OS makes switching between multiple mobile apps faster and easier.

Improved security and privacy are something the Go edition also offers. The same protections available on the regular Android 11 platform are also applied to the entry-level phones. Expect the one-time permissions will be ready so protections are set in place for important and sensitive sensors and apps like location, camera, or microphone. Android 11 Go can also ‘auto-reset’ those apps if you haven’t used them in a while—to be sure.

Android 11 (Go edition) also brings gesture-based navigation to the phone so you can easily navigate from the home screen to other apps and functions with a few swipes. Some Android Go apps will also receive new features. For example, Files by Google will get Safe Folder that requires a 4-digit PIN.

The Android Go team has expanded the availability of the lighter version of Android 11 to devices with up to 2GB of memory. This means up to four apps can run at the same time in the background even if the device is low-cost.